What does סָרַר (sōrēr) mean in the Bible?
סָרַר (sōrēr): Deliberate moral obstinacy—turning away from covenant obligation through willful resistance, not passive weakness.
Hebrew · H5637
סָרַר
To turn away, i.e. (morally) be refractory
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סָרַר H5637
Pronunciation sōrēr
What does סָרַר (sōrēr) mean in the Bible?
סָרַר (sōrēr): Deliberate moral obstinacy—turning away from covenant obligation through willful resistance, not passive weakness.
Full entry for סָרַר (H5637) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H5637?
The BSB source-word alignment has 17 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include a stubborn (4), the rebellious (2), [from] the rebellious (1), an obstinate (1), and defiant (1).
Where does סָרַר (sōrēr) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Deuteronomy 21:18. Its strongest book concentrations include Psalms (4), Hosea (3), Isaiah (3), Deuteronomy (2).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It a stubborn 4× Deuteronomy 21:18, Nehemiah 9:29, Psalms 78:8, Zechariah 7:11
the rebellious 2× Psalms 66:7, Psalms 68:6
[from] the rebellious 1× Psalms 68:18
an obstinate 1× Isaiah 65:2
and defiant 1× Proverbs 7:11
are hardened 1× Jeremiah 6:28
are rebellious 1× Hosea 9:15
are rebels 1× Isaiah 1:23
as a stubborn 1× Hosea 4:16
is as obstinate 1× Hosea 4:16
is stubborn 1× Deuteronomy 21:20
stubborn 1× Jeremiah 5:23
to the rebellious 1× Isaiah 30:1
Show sample aligned rows
Deuteronomy 21:18 סוֹרֵ֣ר to a stubborn Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular Deuteronomy 21:20 סוֹרֵ֣ר to is stubborn Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular Nehemiah 9:29 סוֹרֶ֔רֶת to a stubborn Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular Psalms 66:7 הַסּוֹרְרִ֓ים׀ to the rebellious Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural Psalms 68:6 ס֝וֹרֲרִ֗ים to the rebellious Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural Psalms 68:18 ס֝וֹרְרִ֗ים to [from] the rebellious Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural Psalms 78:8 סוֹרֵ֪ר to a stubborn Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular Proverbs 7:11 וְסֹרָ֑רֶת to and defiant Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular Isaiah 1:23 סוֹרְרִ֗ים to are rebels Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural Isaiah 30:1 סֽוֹרְרִים֙ to to the rebellious Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Deuteronomy 21:18
Aligned rows 17
Books represented 8
Deuteronomy 2 Nehemiah 1 Psalms 4 Proverbs 1 Isaiah 3 Jeremiah 2 Hosea 3 Zechariah 1
Source forms
סוֹרֵ֣ר 3x sō·w·rêr Deuteronomy 21:18, Deuteronomy 21:20, Jeremiah 5:23
הַסּוֹרְרִ֓ים׀ 1x has·sō·wr·rîm Psalms 66:7
וְסֹרָ֑רֶת 1x wə·sō·rā·reṯ Proverbs 7:11
סוֹרֵ֪ר 1x sō·w·rêr Psalms 78:8
סוֹרֵ֑ר 1x sō·w·rêr Isaiah 65:2
ס֝וֹרְרִ֗ים 1x sō·wr·rîm Psalms 68:18
סוֹרְרִ֗ים 1x sō·wr·rîm Isaiah 1:23
סֽוֹרְרִים֙ 1x sō·wr·rîm Isaiah 30:1
Parsing patterns
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural 6x Psalms 68:6, Psalms 68:18, Isaiah 1:23, Isaiah 30:1
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular 5x Deuteronomy 21:18, Deuteronomy 21:20, Psalms 78:8, Isaiah 65:2
Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular 3x Nehemiah 9:29, Hosea 4:16, Zechariah 7:11
Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural 1x Psalms 66:7
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular 1x Proverbs 7:11
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular 1x Hosea 4:16
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Deliberate moral obstinacy—turning away from covenant obligation through willful resistance, not passive weakness.
Strong's H5637
Lexical occurrences 17 verses Word forms 1 form 15 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link Hosea 4:11-19 Source Gloss
to turn away, i.e. (morally) be refractory
Extended definition Source: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Deliberate moral obstinacy—turning away from covenant obligation through willful resistance, not passive weakness.
to turn away, i.e. (morally) be refractory BDB: be stubborn Usage: × away, backsliding, rebellious, revolter(-ing), slide back, stubborn, withdrew.
Grammatical Forms
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 1 Aligned forms 15
Qal basic active stem — the word in its most common, direct sense 15×
Participle active Deut 21:18 · Deut 21:20 · Hos 4:16 · Hos 9:15 · Isa 1:23 · Isa 30:1 · Isa 65:2 · Jer 5:23 · Jer 6:28 · Neh 9:29 · Ps 68:7 · Ps 68:19 · Ps 78:8 · Zech 7:11 14×
Perfect Hos 4:16 1×
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Old Testament Witnesses
to be stubborn
Stubborn or resistant.
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 17 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
סָרַר is a primitive root - no further derivation.
Why This Word Matters
Describes covenant defiance in forming alliances apart from God. Hosea 4:11-19
Describes covenant rebellion. Isaiah 30:1-7
Canonical Themes
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain